In light of mounting research showing the serious risks of contracting COVID-19 during pregnancy, the CDC is re-upping its urgency that pregnant women get their shots.
The risk of COVID-19 exposure from high-touch surfaces within grocery stores is low if physical distancing guidelines and recommended cleaning protocols are followed.
Several thousand protestors opposed to the COVID-19 vaccine march through the streets of midtown Manhattan in New York on Sept. 18, 2021.
Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis News via Getty Images
A growing body of research shows that nutrition, sleep, exercise and a host of other lifestyle choices can help optimize the immune system. But they are no substitute for life-saving vaccines.
Making vaccines in South Africa by building on the foundation that’s been laid is possible. But only if substantial and sustained investment in human resources and infrastructure becomes a reality.
The core of the objections, whether they are about vaccinations, lockdowns, social distancing, or mask wearing, seems to concern an apparent erosion of personal liberty.
An FDA panel has voted against recommending approval of a booster COVID-19 shot for the general population – disappointing some public health officials.
In the reluctance to vaccinate, there is a lack of trust and understanding of the scientific process. Better communication would help rebuild bridges.
The Canadian Press/Paul Chiasson
Before the pandemic, the public perceived science as infallible and inaccessible. But the opening up of research to the general public has changed that perception.
Two different respiratory viruses were found to swap proteins when they infected the same cell.
The huge number of active coronavirus infections offers plenty of opportunity for mutations to occur and new variants to arise.
Eoneren/E+ via Getty Images
When the coronavirus copies itself, there is a chance its RNA will mutate. But new variants must jump from one host to another, and the more infections there are, the better chance this will happen.
The next months are going to remain difficult. But I’m still hopeful about the future. There will come a point when enough people are vaccinated that case numbers begin to decrease.
People getting vaccinated may still have questions about COVID-19 vaccines, like why it takes two doses — and then two weeks — to take full effect.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
A medical student answers questions he gets asked at a COVID-19 vaccine clinic: Efficacy versus real-world effectiveness, immune response and how the mRNA vaccines compare to vaccines already in wide use.
By better communicating how vaccines boost the immune system’s long term “memory”, manufacturers could address vaccine hesitancy.
i_am_zews/Shutterstock
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand